Packing machinery



Oct. 21, 1958 R. w. HARRIS PAcKDzG MACHINERY Filed Jan. 30. 1956 I 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR Raw/ma W. Hnnms mm ATTORNEYS Oct. 21, 1958 R. w. HARRIS PACKING MACHINERY 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 50, 1956 IINVENTOR Rucumn W. HnRms mm ATTORNEYS Oct. 21, 1958 R. w. HARRIS PACKING MACHINERY Filed Jan. 30, 1956 4 Sheets-Sheet- 3 INVENTOR.

BY onam, M, M

" yaw ATTORMEY5 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Jan. 30, 1956 Fig.4.

I INVENTOR Rncunwn Hmzms BY and, M

- ATTORNE Y5 Claims priority, application Great Britain January 24, 1956 7 Claims. (CI. 93-49) This invention concerns improvements in or relating to packing machinery, and in particular, machinery for ufacturing packets each of which includes a body port n and a lid portion connected to the body portion, each said portion comprising pairs of overlapping panels at one side at least of the packet, the said overlapping panels of body portion being aligned with those of the lid portion so as together to form a wall of the whole packet. Such packet will for convenience be referred to herein as a packet as specified, United States patent specification No. 2,163,828 discloses packets each of generally rectilinear cross-section and having a box-like lid hingedly connected to the back wall of a box-like body, which are examples of packets as specified, and the present invention is particularly concerned with the manufacture of packets generally similar in construction to those exumples.

in a packet as specified, it is desirable that the overlapping panels of the lid portion should be properly ali led with those of the body portion, as Well as being erly located with relation to other parts of the packet, so as to present a neat appearance.

The present invention is concerned with a stage (for a plc the final stage) in the manufacture of a packet cified, at which stage panels at a side or two sides packet are to be folded into overlapping relation ship with underlying panels and secured thereto, thus forming a wall or walls of double thickness.

According to the present invention there is provided, in apparatus for manufacturing packets as specified, pusher means to feed forwardly a partly folded packet,

with panels extending outwardly from the lid portion and lid portion) of the packet, whereby said panel is independently controlled so as to maintain it in desired alignment during said forward movement of the packet. The apparatus may comprise bending means to engage the panel extending from one portion of the packet and to fold or bend such panel out of the plane of the panel tending from the other portion of the packet, so as to tilt engagement of the rear edge of the panel extendom the leading portion of the packet. For example re the leading end of the packet is the lid portion, the bending means may be arranged to engage the panel 'ing from the body portion and fold it out of the of the panel extending from the lid portion, so as to the rear edge of the latter panel. i c said bending means may be constituted by a part the auxiliary pusher element which engages the rear ge of the panel extending from the leading (e. g. the i a) portion of the packet. For example the said auxiliary 2,856,827 Patented Oct. 21, 1958 pusher element may be movable (e. g. swingable) down-' wardly into operative position whereby the said part engages and pushes downwardly the panel extending from the rearmost (e. g. the body) portion of the packet, and the pusher surface of said auxiliary element moves into position behind said rear edge.

The apparatus may also comprise a further pusher element arranged to engage the rear edge of, and thereby control the alignment of, an inner panel connected to one (e. g. the leading) portion of the packet, which panel is to form the underlying or inner one of a pair of overlapped panels (e. g. on the lid portion of the packet).

Preferably a pusher element which engages the rear face of the packet also engages the rear edge of a panel extending outwardly from the rearmost (e. g. the body) portion of the packet, to maintain said panel in desired alignment during forward movement of the packet.

It will be understood that the expression the rear face of the packet where used above and in the appended claims refers to the rearmost face of the packet considered in the direction of movement of the packet.

Apparatus according to the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure l is a side elevation;

Figure 2 is a plan, on a larger scale, of Figure 1, certain parts being omitted;

Figure 3 shows part of Figure 1 to a larger scale;

Figure 4 is an enlarged end view, partly in section, in the direction of the arrow A, Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a partial end view in the direction of the arrow B, Figure 1;

Figure 6 is a perspective rear view of a partly finished packet as specified; and 1 Figure 7 is a perspective front view of a finished packet.

Referring first to Figures 6 and 7, the packet comprises a box-like body portion 1 and a box-like lid portion 2, whose back wall 3 is hingedly connected along a hingeline 4, Figure 6, to a back wall 5 of the body portion. At each side of the packet, the side wall of the body por: tion comprises overlapped panels 6 and 7, while the side wall of the lid portion similarly comprises overlapped panels 8 and 9. In Figure 6 the panels 6 and 8 are shown extending outwardly from the body and lid portions respectively of the packet, while in Figure 7 these panels are shown folded down and overlapping the inner or underlying panels 7 and 9. The packet has also a bottom wall 10.

Figure 6 shows the packet in the final stage of its manufacture, when only the outstanding panels 6 and 8 remain to be folded down and secured to the inner side panels 7 and 9. The actual folding down of these panels is accomplished while the packet is in a pocket 11 of a stacker wheel 12, Figure 1, which rotates, in the direction shown by the arrow, between two fixed rings or side plates 13. The pockets 11 are formed as slots in the wheel, with open sides, and the plates I3 constitute side checks for the open sides of the pockets. The side plates are cut away as shown to expose the open sides of the pockets at the position where packets are inserted and subsequently ejected. A packet is inserted into a pocket lid portion first, with the extending panels 6 and 8 uppermost, so that subsequent rotation of the wheel causes these panels to be engaged and folded down by the plates 13. This arrangement of the stacker wheel and the folding down of panels 6 and 8 are generally similar to what is disclosed in United States patent specifiw cation No. 2,591,135.

The apparatus now to be described is for feeding a packet, which has been folded to the condition shown in Figure 6, into a pocket of the stacker wheel 12. The

:apparatuswhereby. thepacket is folded prior to this stage maybe for example as disclosed in United States patent specification No. 2,209,111.

Successive packets such as that marked P, Figure 1,

are pushed along a bed 14 between guides 15 by pushers -16 onanendless chain conveyor 17, with panels 6 and 8 extending outwardly as in Figure 6. Stripes of adhesive are applied :to the lower faces of these panels 6 and 8 by raised portions or ribs 18 on gumming discs 19. The panels 7 and 9 have been folded into place but not, of

-course,.secured inany way, and they are held in place by the guides 15.

A reciprocating pusher; device is arranged to continue the. forward feeding of a packet, at a slightly higher speed than that of the pushers 16, before the latter reach the end of-the lower run ofthe chain 17. This device comprises-various elements mounted on slides 2% which are ,reciprocated along guides 21 fixed ateach side of the bed. The slides are moved to and fro by links 22 pivoted ported inbrackets 25. The shaft 24 is rocked by a lever 26 mounted thereon, whichis swung to and fro by a .permits it to move; up and down while rocking about its ,pivot point 28, which is also the axis of rotation of the cam 30.

The wall of the packet, which is the rear face considered in the direction ofqmovement of the packet is engaged by a pair of pivoted pawls or pusher elements 32, arranged at oppositesides of the bed. For clearness,

only one ofthese elements 32 is shown in Figure 2 While the other is shown in Figure 4. The element is pivoted at 33' and urged inwardly, i. e. towards the bed, by a spring 34. The operative faces of the elements 32 engage the rear .face of the packet at the region of the side corners of that face. The elements are pivoted so as to allow them to move outwardly and while the pusher device is movingrearwardly past a packet prior to feeding it forwardly. Inward movement of the elements 32 is limited by engagement of tails 35 with the slides 20.

The guides 21 are mounted on plates 36 whose inner side faces 37 form partial continuations of the side guides .15. These faces 37' extend only a short distance up-. wardly, as best seen in Figure 4, so as to leave room for the pusher elements 32, but control members 33, Figures 2, 3 and 4, fixed on the slides 20, extend alongside the inner panels 7 and 9 of the packet while the pusher device is moving it. forwardly. The forward ends vof thesemembers 38 also constitute pusher elements whose operative faces 39 are oblique so as to coincide with the rear edges of panels 9. As can be seen in Figures 2 and 4, the inner side faces 37 of the plates 36 are recessed slightly at 40, Figure 2. This is to allow the panels 9 to bend slightly outwardly, so that they move slightly out of the plane of the panels 7, and thus expose their rearward edges to be engaged by the pusher faces 39, while the panels 7 are held in position by the inner sides of the members 38.

A further pair of pusher-elements 41 are arranged to engage the upper part of the rear face 10 of the packet and also the rear edges of the panels 6. The elements 41 are mounted on members which are pivoted at 42 so as to be swingable up and down. This is to enable them to ride over a packet as the slides 20 move rearwardly past a packet preparatory to pushing it forwardly. In their operative position the elements 41 rest on the tops of the elements 32, as seen in Figures 3 and 4.

Fixed on each pusher-element 41 is a further pusherelement 43 which has an oblique operative pusher face 44, so as to coincide withthe rear edge of a panel 8 which extends. outwardly from the lid portion of the packet. .In order to cause these rear edges to be exposed *for engagement by the faces 44, the bottom parts of the elements 43 engage the panels 6 and fold or bend them downwardly, out of the plane of the panels 3. This is best illustrated in Figure 4. The elements 43 move downwardly by gravity, but if necessary they could be spring-urged downwardly.

It will be apparent from the above description that on a rearward stroke of the slides 20, the various pusherelements carried by the slides pass over or alongside a packet which is still being pushed forward by a pusher 16, Figure 1. That is to say, the elements 4 and 43 are swung upwardly by the packet, while the pivoted elements 32 are swung sideways by the packet. The members 38 are slightly tapered as shown in gure 2 to provide a lead for the leading end of a packet passing between them during the rearward stroke of the slides.

As the forward stroke begins, the operative faces of the pushers 32 and 41 engage the rear face of the packet, the pusher 41 also engaging the rear edges of the panels 6. At the same time the pusher faces engage the rear edges of the panels 8, since the panels 6 have been partly folded down by the elements 43 resting on them. The panels 9 are permitted by the recesses It? to spring out slightly and expose their rear edges so that these are engaged by the pusher faces 39. The inner side panels 7 are controlled by the members As the slides move faster than the chain 17', packet is moved away from the pusher 16 which has previously pushed it forward. The reciprocating pusher device pushes the packet forwardly completely into a pocket 11 of the wheel 12, which at that moment is stationary.

Further control elements 45 are positioned at opposite sides of the pocket 11 to press the panels 9 into their upright position and hold them there While the packet is in the pocket.

After the packet has been moved fully into a pocket, slides move backwardly a very slight distance, e. g.

the

mm., to relieve the packet and its outstanding panels of pressure by the pusher faces and to provide a clearance between these faces and the parts of the packet. There after the slides remain stationary while the wheel starts to move, carrying the packet upwardly. An extension 1341 on theside plate 13 engages the panels 6 andS as the packet is carried upwardly, and folds them down against the panels 7 and 9.

It will be seen that during the movement of the partly formed packet into the pocket, the packet has been pushed bodily by the elements 32 and 41 engaging its rear face, while the elements 41 have at the same time engaged the rear edges of the panels 6. At the same time, pusher faces 44 and 39 of the elements 43 and 38, moving with the elements 32 and 41, have engaged and pushed the rear edges of the unsecured panels 8 and 9. T this way the side lid' panels 8 and 9 are controlled ll of the'side panels of the body portion of th a case like the present where these side lie. short, it will be seen that without such co 7 would be a risk that they would become misa d while the packet was moving into a pocket of the sta. (31. wheel, with the probable result that they would be secured in improper register.

The wheel 12 carries the packet through nearly 360, until the pocket registers with an ejector 46 l 5, which passes through the pocket and eje A During its movement with the wheel the adhesive scouring the side panels has dried, for which purpose the side plates 13 are heated.

1. In apparatus for manufacturing packets as r SECUIE with a panel extending outwardly from the lid portion and a further panel extending outwardly from the body portion of the packet at the same side as the first said panel, towards folding means which fold said extending panels on to underlying panels to which they are to be secured, said pusher means comprising a pusher element to engage the rear face of the packet, and an auxiliary pusher element, movable with the first said pusher element, to engage the rear edge of the leading one of said panels independently of the trailing one of said panels, whereby said leading panel is independently controlled so as to maintain it in desired alignment during said forward movement of the packet.

2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, comprising bending means to engage one of said panels and to fold or bend such panel out of the plane of the other of said panels so as to permit engagement of the rear edge of the said leading panel.

3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the said bending means is arranged to engage the trailing one of said panels and fold it out of the plane of the said leading panel so as to expose the rear edge of the said leading panel.

4. Apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein the said bending means is constituted by a part of the said aux iliary pusher element which engages the rear edge of the said leading panel.

5. Apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein the said auxiliary pusher element is movable downwardly into operative position whereby the said part engages and pushes downwardly the said trailing panel, and the pusher surface of said auxiliary element moves: into position behind said rear edge.

6. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, comprising a further pusher element arranged to engage the rear edge of, and thereby control the alignment of, an inner panel connected to one portion of the packet, which panel is to form the underlying or inner one of a pair of overlapped panels.

7. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the said pusher element which engages the rear face of the packet also engages the rear edge of the said trailing panel to maintain said trailing panel in desired alignment during forward movement of the packet.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,591,135 Chalmers et al Apr. 1, 1952 

